Rules

Forum Archive : Rules

 
Play cubeless at 2away/2away?

From:   Raccoon
Address:   rofl@mao.com
Date:   11 October 2005
Subject:   Rules change: 2-away all Super-Crawford?
Forum:   GammOnLine

There was discussion in the Norwegian forum of a proposal to make the
cube dead at the score 2-away all.  Do you think that would make match
play more or less interesting, challenging or advantageous to the
superior player?

Stanley E. Richards  writes:

I do not enjoy cubeless backgammon even at this score. One of the
enticing aspects of bg is properly reading the board. It is imperative
at 2-away all to recognize when you have that slight, but not too slight
advantage to turn the cube. My opponent may not recognize his advantage,
play on, and roll well the next turn to increase his winning chances to
73%. I want the opportunity to pass at his next turn.  My match equity
would be 30%, instead of 27%. Backgammon's appeal is its complexity and
many permutations. Why reduce the interesting intricacies of bg?

OpenWheel  writes:

My feeling is backgammon works fine the way it is now. So the cube is
usually turned early making the game DMP. So what? Need to get to dmp
sometime.

Doug Doub  writes:

I have been an advocate of this rule for a number of years, and I use it
in my matches against some players who also like it.  In an expert game,
the cube gets turned on the first roll at this score, so there is no
such thing as a two-point match.

It would clearly make the game more interesting and challenging by
introducing gammons into the picture, and all the decisions about how
agressively to play for a gammon. DMP is the least exciting backgammon
match score.

The rule would occasionally make a match last an extra game or two,
which could be inconvenient in a tourney. It is also one extra rule to
remember. However, I think that the benefits far outweigh the potential
negatives.
 
Did you find the information in this article useful?          

Do you have any comments you'd like to add?     

 

Rules

Bearing off question  (Colin Wiel+, July 2000) 
Can a beaver be dropped?  (Robert-Jan Veldhuizen+, Mar 2006)  [GammOnLine forum]
Can a beaver be dropped?  (Stein Kulseth, May 2000) 
Changing dice  (Julian Hayward, Feb 1998) 
Checker shuffling  (James Johnson+, June 2000) 
Gentleman's previlege  (Daniel+, Sept 2005)  [GammOnLine forum]
Hit and run  (Rich+, Jan 2000) 
"Illegal moves" rule  (Chuck Bower+, May 2004)  [GammOnLine forum]
Illegal plays  (Bob+, Aug 2002) 
Illegal plays  (Marc Gray, Nov 1995) 
Illegal plays that can't be condoned  (Matt Cohn-Geier+, Feb 2011) 
Is stalemate possible?  (Jan Andrew Bloxham+, July 1995) 
Jacoby rule  (Daniel Murphy, Dec 1997) 
Jacoby rule ambiguity?  (Chuck Bower+, Mar 2011) 
Jacoby rule--Good or bad?  (neilkaz+, May 2006) 
Legal roll  (Sture Lifh+, July 2004) 
Legal roll  (Gregg Cattanach, Oct 2001) 
Moving checkers unambiguously  (Timothy Chow+, Oct 2009) 
Moving checkers with two hands  (Michael Strato+, June 2000) 
Must a hit checker be placed on the bar?  (Dani+, May 2006) 
Pick and pass and bearing off  (SimonW+, Jan 2005) 
Play cubeless at 2away/2away?  (Raccoon+, Oct 2005)  [GammOnLine forum]
Repairing an illegal play  (Michael J. Zehr, Apr 1995) 
Resigning  (Bob Lang+, Aug 2002) 
Rolling on wrong side of board  (Ian Shaw+, Aug 2004)  [GammOnLine forum] [Long message]
Rolling on wrong side of board  (Kit Woolsey, Jan 1999) 
Rolling on wrong side of board  (Kit Woolsey, Sept 1998) 
Rolling on wrong side of board  (Bob Hoey, Apr 1998) 
Rolling too soon  (TonyM+, Feb 2007)  [GammOnLine forum]
Rolling too soon  (Stephen Turner, Feb 1998) 
Rolling too soon  (James Grenier+, Sept 1996) 
Talking during play  (EdmondT+, Dec 2000) 
Touch-move rule in backgammon?  (Ken Bame+, Nov 2006)  [GammOnLine forum]
Touch-move rule in backgammon?  (Austefjord+, May 2002) 
U.S. backgammon tournament rules  (Butch Meese, Nov 1997)  [Long message]
When do you give up your chance to double?  (Paul Epstein+, July 2005) 
When is a move over?  (JP White, May 2000) 
Overview  (Daniel Murphy, Apr 2001) 

[GammOnLine forum]  From GammOnLine       [Long message]  Long message       [Recommended reading]  Recommended reading       [Recent addition]  Recent addition
 

  Book Suggestions
Books
Cheating
Chouettes
Computer Dice
Cube Handling
Cube Handling in Races
Equipment
Etiquette
Extreme Gammon
Fun and frustration
GNU Backgammon
History
Jellyfish
Learning
Luck versus Skill
Magazines & E-zines
Match Archives
Match Equities
Match Play
Match Play at 2-away/2-away
Miscellaneous
Opening Rolls
Pip Counting
Play Sites
Probability and Statistics
Programming
Propositions
Puzzles
Ratings
Rollouts
Rules
Rulings
Snowie
Software
Source Code
Strategy--Backgames
Strategy--Bearing Off
Strategy--Checker play
Terminology
Theory
Tournaments
Uncategorized
Variations

 

Return to:  Backgammon Galore : Forum Archive Main Page